B.Sc., Ph.D., C.Psychol., Hon.FBSA
The Lost Girls of Autism [UK] / Off the Spectrum [US]
A new book by Gina Rippon will be available from April 1st 2025 (US edition) and April 3rd 2025 (UK edition). See below for details on each edition and pre-order details.
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Please see the Events page for scheduled talks on this book.
The Lost Girls of Autism [UK Edition]
“The history of autism is male. When autistic girls meet clinicians, they are often misdiagnosed with anxiety, depression, personality disorders, or are missed altogether. Many women only discover they have the condition when they are much older, missing decades of support and understanding. Autism’s ‘male spotlight’ means we are only now starting to redress this profound injustice.
In The Lost Girls of Autism, renowned brain scientist Gina Rippon delves into the emerging science of female autism, asking why it has been systematically ignored and misunderstood for so long. Generations of researchers, convinced autism was a male problem, simply didn’t bother looking for it in women. But it is now becoming increasingly clear that autism is manifestly different for women and girls, and that camouflaging – hiding autistic traits to fit in – is far more widespread than we thought. Urgent and insightful, this groundbreaking book is a clarion call for society to recognize the full spectrum of autistic experience.
To be published in the UK by PanMacmillan.
Available from April 3rd.
Off the Spectrum [US Edition]
“A cognitive neuroscientist reveals how autistic women have been overlooked by biased research—and makes a passionate case for their inclusion.
Who comes to mind when you think about an autistic person? It might be yourself, a relative or friend, a public figure, a fictional character, or a stereotyped image. Regardless, for most of us, it’s likely to be someone male. Autistic women are systematically underdiagnosed, under-researched, and underserved by medical and social systems—to devastating effects.
Gina Rippon sheds light on how old ideas about autism leave women behind and how the scientific community must catch up. Generations of researchers, convinced autism was a male problem, simply didn’t bother looking for it in women, creating a snowball effect of biased research. To correct this “male spotlight” problem, Rippon outlines how autism presents differently in girls and women—like their tendency to camouflage their autistic traits, or how their intense interests may take a form considered to be more socially acceptable. When autism research studies don’t recruit female participants, Rippon argues, it’s not only autistic women who are failed; it’s the entire scientific community. Correcting a major scientific bias, this book provides a much-needed exploration of autism in women to parents, clinicians, and autistic women themselves.
